Soon, Eric Anderson found himself on the Twist family couch, nursing a cold soda, and sitting in-between his mother on one side and Doctor Frances Twist on the other.
Everyone else who was there either stood nearby or was now sitting at the dining room table, except for Eric's older brother Nate, who was still out somewhere with his mysterious new girlfriend that nobody had yet to meet.*
All were within their normal human forms, except for Eric, who was a normal to begin with.
"I have absolutely no idea what came over me," admitted Eric, while looking at his mother. "One moment I'm hearing that Spencer is in trouble, being threatened by that jerk that hurt her before**. Then suddenly my mind goes totally blank and offline. All I could think about, if I was truly thinking at all, was the need to help her. That's why I snuck out your bathroom window, but I will repair the damage," Eric promised Frances Twist.
"I already took care of it son," said his father, William Anderson, with a slight smile. He, along with everyone else, was happy that Eric was back with them safe and sound, but concerned about what would happen next.
"Getting to the Lawson's house through the woods was no problem, and I thought I did pretty good following everyone's trail at first," continued Eric, explaining seeing the two set of tracks, "but the one I thought was Spencer's started crossing and criss-crossing itself, and..."
"That's because she was trying to lose Jeremy Bower, without knowing you were out there too," surmised Samantha Twist. The Town Chancellor was technically still sitting at the dining room table, but had moved her chair closer to the sofa and her wife.
"I'm sorry I borrowed your baseball bat without permission Ben," Eric said to him from his position on the couch.
"It's okay slugger. I understand," said Ben with a smile, while holding his boyfriend Alex Ramsey's hand under the table.
"But I still don't understand why I went out there to begin with," said Eric, as his mother held him closer to her. "It was foolish to rush out there ill equipped without a plan."
Doctor Twist took a brief look at Martha, who nodded her head in agreement. "Eric," began Frances, "I know why you went out there the way you did."
"Why?" asked Eric weakly, while turning to look at her.
"You're in love," was the therapist's answer.
"REALLY?" asked Eric in surprise. "I thought so, but it feels totally different from my time with Julie Stovall."
"Different in a good or bad way?" wondered Frances, who had already heard of the recent developments between Eric and the were-mermaid from Martha.
"Very good," thought Eric with a smile on his face. "Spencer is at least as intelligent as me, although she might have some behavioral issues she needs to work on," he said, recalling the incident at school that technically had her grounded over the weekend.
"Maybe..." was all Frances would say, encouraging Eric to continue.
"But she held her own in the conversation we had about the movie we saw Saturday night, and Spencer likes Doctor Who too. Julie hates the show, and the only movies she's ever interested in are chick flicks."
"So, you have more in common with Spencer Lawson than you ever did with Julie Stovall. That's a good start," observed Doctor Twist with a smile.
"But I'm not sure it would ever work out between us," realized Eric, sadly.
"Oh? Why?" asked Frances, concerned.
Then Eric explained that since she was a natural hybrid were, Spencer didn't know what would happen if she ever got truly... intimate with a normal.
"I might become a werewolf like her father; if not either a bi or outright gay werecat like her mother, but the odds are apparently too great for me to become a hybrid were like her," he added.
"How do you feel about that?" asked Frances, looking closer at her "patient".
"Werewolves have always been Nate's thing, not mine, and I like girls too much to be comfortable with the other option. No offense," Eric hastily added.
"None taken," said Frances, speaking on behalf of herself, the rest of the Twists, and Alex.
"Why does life have to be so complicated?" asked Eric, leaning back against the sofa.
"Maybe you're over thinking this dear," said his mother, while stroking his hair lovingly. "After all, it will still be... quite a while before you and Spencer reach the point where you want to..." and then her voice trailed off.
"Wouldn't be the first time I over thought something," agreed Eric, before taking another sip of soda.
"Besides, there's always the possibility of joining the Skulk like me and mom before the two of you reach that point," his father reminded him.
"Hmmm... Maybe I should just wait and cross that bridge when I actually come to it," surmised Eric, not mentioning the option of becoming a werepanther that he and Spencer had already discussed privately. If only we knew a werepanthress we could trust if things DO go that far between us...
"That sounds like a good idea," agreed his mother, while kissing the top of Eric's head.
"So, where do we go from here?"
"How about out to dinner, and then we can stop by the hospital to see how Spencer is doing?" suggested his father.
"Really?" asked Eric, standing up, ready to go. "Can I use the bathroom first?"
"Only if you promise to come out the bathroom door this time," Samantha Twist said with a smile.
"I will. Thank you," said Eric, running to the facilities.
"You do know he's at that... awkward age," Frances said to the Andersons once they heard the bathroom door click shut.
"Yeah. In-between a boy and a man, but not quite either," observed William Anderson.
"Eric is pro-were," began Martha, as if she had to explain her son to her friends, "but he also wants to be able to choose which kind of were he becomes when..."
"It's harder for a normal than a naturally born were," began Ben. "We're taught from birth what to expect."
"While for someone like Eric, who's never really thought about it before, it's like being able to choose anything he wants in the candy store, but can only ever have one piece," observed Alex.
"Very astute," agreed Frances. "And if what I've learned about Julie Stovall's behavior and the situation with Spencer Lawson is true..."
"Eric's back to needing to choose what kind of were he wants to be before..." realized Samantha.
"And none of us can ever force the issue or a choice upon him," stressed Frances. "Whatever Eric eventually does decide has to be of his own free will. Agreed?"
"Agreed," everyone present said, before the flush of a toilet could be heard.
A moment later, Eric Anderson came back to join the others, happy and smiling as he asked, "Will the Twists be joining us for dinner too?"
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*The werepanthress Kenya Adaeze.
**The were-rottweiler Jeremy Bower, now in custody.